Oyster Farmer

Saw this movie over the weekend in New York at the Quad Cinema.

One if the best movies to come out of Australia, period. I highly recommend seeing this film. Visually stunning, without being overwhelming, or detracting from the storyline. With the gorgeous Hawkesbury River as her backdrop, Reeves weaves characters vividly to life with the pithy little concerns and subtleties that are so crucial in a movie so delicate. The script is tight and beautifully executed. Compared to other feature directorial debuts this is an incredible piece. As a stand alone work, I think this movie will be looked back on as the beginning of an Australian legacy. Bravo. I hope to see much more from this very talented director.

Oyster Farmer is a curious Australian movie in that its production values are more impressive than the story itself. First and foremost, the music throughout the movie is brilliant in that it suits the movie perfectly. The cinematography is likewise first class - the aerial scenes of the Hawkesbury River in particular are stunning. Also, the editing is tight and keeps the movie from bogging down - the editor and director deserve commendation for keeping the movie flowing.

The story itself is quirky and sometimes makes quantum leaps in credibility but, hey, what interesting movie doesn't? The acting is believable and allows you to understand the characters in most cases.

As a simple tale of life in a remote river community, the movie works quite well and deserves its reputation as a significant Australian film. Not great, but quite good.

There was a certain degree of anticipation for this movie for me, since I live in the area where most of the movie is set. And after being part of the experience - drinking at the pub with some of the stars, and watching the film crew in action, it certainly didn't disappoint!!

It's not every day that you watch a movie on the big screen set in your own suburb, recognize the faces of locals who have bit parts, and feel a great sense of pride in the beautiful scenery that you have come to know so well... it's a bit surreal....

I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed the movie quite so much if it wasn't set in my home town, but nevertheless, the story was pleasant enough, the characters were likable... some may find it a little slow and tame, and the plot was a little disjointed, with not a great deal of drama or suspense or even character development.

The general consensus of my neighbours who have seen the film is that the true star of the movie was the Hawkesbury River.

"Oyster Farmer" is a warm, refreshing, Australian take on the old-fashioned genre of the secretive, hunky stranger with a murky past shaking up a small community.

Alex O'Lachlan in his notable debut as "Jack Flange" is very much like William Holden in "Picnic" and Paul Newman in "The Long Hot Summer." While debut writer/director Anna Reeves certainly appreciates his visual and visceral assets, his character's mysteriously tattooed masculinity is a Sensitive New Age Guy metrosexual compared to the hard-working blokes along the mangroves of the isolated Hawkesbury River north of Sydney, which looks a lot like the bayou country of Louisiana that has been similarly used for sultry effect in movies like "The Big Easy."

While it's a bit confusing at first to sort out the relationships (let alone the basics of oyster farming), partly due to the accents, in this tight and quirky Brooklyn where everyone knows generations of everybody's paternity, marital disputes, personal business, and, particularly for the plot, their mail, the gradual revelations add to our enjoyment of the comfortable repartee as we are thrust into the ongoing squabbles along with the outsider and learn to appreciate this fading lifestyle as it becomes his home despite his suspicions and other plans.

Jim Norton as a Granddad with an Irish gift of gab is particularly entertaining as he goads his stubborn wirey son, an appealing David Field, to make up with his wife, who has the more successful touch as an oyster farmer.

Women in this macho environment have to not only be tough, but resilient as they find ways to still assert their femininity. Diana Glenn's "Pearl" seems perfectly adapted to the local way of life-- her hitchhiking up the river is a wonderful detail even as she has "Sex and the City" proclivities --though her flirtation with "Jack" is only frankly lusty. Kerry Armstrong is a marvelous matriarch, but her character's level-headedness reduces opportunities for jealousy, as the script opts for humor over tension.

Jack Thompson has a small local color role, but key as he becomes an anchoring father figure for the restless "Jack" as we see him grow new roots.

The national park scenery and Alun Bollinger's cinematography are breathtakingly beautiful and that waterfront train looks like a delightful ride, though a bit more geographical context would have been helpful.

Oyster Farmer is a very enjoyable romantic comedy, one of the best I've seen for a while.

Why is it so good? The plot is entertaining, well thought out and moves at a rapid pace - I didn't detect any real lulls. The characters are what you'd expect of a working class rural Australian community - warts and all. I didn't recognise any of the actors from other films but I think they did a great job of getting the viewer into the story. In addition I laughed out loud a number of times - not something that happens too often!!

I really enjoyed the aerial shots of the Hawkesbury River, very relaxing and reminding me of a holiday I once spent in the region.

Overall Oyster Farmer is a real gem.